Tuesday, March 9, 2021
Dear Your Overseas Dream Home Reader,
Right now, my senior researcher, Margaret Summerfield, is on the famed Cote d’Azur in the south of France.
It’s a part of Europe that drips money. In towns like Cannes, the opulence verges on the obscene.
“I can’t recall anywhere else I’ve visited with so many supercars,” Margaret tells me. “Ferraris, Lamborginis, Bentleys, Maseratis—they’re a daily sight.”
In terms of real estate, the glamor factor adds a hefty premium. You’re paying Lamborgini-like prices for Peugeot-like offerings.
One unremarkable studio apartment Margaret showed me would set you back €740,000 ($881,790). That’s for just 290 square feet of space. And at that it needed a facelift.
I’ll be sharing Margaret’s report with you in a few days.
Today, however, I want to talk about the “Other French Riviera.”
The Languedoc-Roussillon region in the South of France is often thought of as the Côte d’Azur’s unspoiled sibling—the one that didn’t marry into wealth, that remained grounded, authentic, but overlooked.
It covers the coastal area of southern France just west of Provence and stretches all the way to the Spanish border.
With 300 days of sunshine a year, vast Mediterranean beaches, world-class wines and pretty hilltop villages, the Languedoc easily rivals it’s wealthy neighbor. But in terms of bang for your buck, it’s the clear winner. You’ll pay one-third to one-quarter of what you could expect to pay in glamorous Côte d’Azur.
Discover bargain homes from the Languedoc in my Cheap Dream Home report, here.
Historic homes, in particular, are a real bargain here. The French tend to buy new, in part because the “Pinel system” gives them a sizeable tax reduction on new builds (this initiative is set to end later this year), which means you’ll find some remarkable but overlooked historic homes with price tags that seem to be missing a zero.
Here are a few homes I’ve come across in the Languedoc recently that offer real bang for your buck…
This three-bedroom home in the village of Azille is spread over three levels, comes with a courtyard, and lists for just €81,500 ($96,658).
Azille, is a medieval village that sits on a hill overlooking the vineyards of the Minervois region. It offers wine tours, a wine bar, an art gallery, a bakery, a traditional French restaurant, with a magnificent avenue of ancient trees encircling its old walls.
The village sits on the Canal du Midi, which connects Toulouse to the Mediterranean and is a popular route for canal cruises. It’s also close to the lake of Jouarres, a swimming spot, shaded by pine forest, and rimmed with pebbles beaches.
If you up your budget, this renovated three-bedroom, 19th-century village home in Azille is yours for €170,000 ($201,418). Be sure to check on the south-facing garden and patio in the listing.
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If your tastes are a little more aristocratic, check out this two-bedroom apartment in a 19th-century château listed for just €110,000 ($132,529).
In a market town in the Minervois wine region, your private apartment is served by a grand entrance hall and an impressive curving marble stair. It comes with two large glazed double doors leading to the stone balcony, a red marble fireplace, cornices… You also have access to a shared garden.
The château is in the center of Olonzac with its shops, market, restaurants, and cafes. The beaches of the Mediterranean are just 40 minutes away and the nearby cities of Beziers and Carcassonne have airports with regular international flights.
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To see more cheap properties from the Languedoc and elsewhere, get my newly-updated report:
How to Find and Buy Your Cheap Dream Home (And the 7 Best Places to Do It!)
Wishing you good real estate investing,
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Ronan McMahon, Real Estate Trend Alert
Your Comments and QuestionsGail says: Hello, I’ve contemplated retiring in Italy for years but recently read that I would need to prove I have $32,000 per year until I die. Otherwise, government won’t offer a visa. True? Ronan says: Hi Gail, for the elective residence visa, which allows you to live, but not to work, in Italy, the Italian government will want to see income of at least €31,000 (so $36,729) per year. Couples would need an income of €38,000 ($45,023). Additionally, you’ll be required to provide proof of health insurance to cover at least €30,000 worth of medical care. However, it is likely that authorities will assess the situation on a case-by-case basis. Once you have lived in Italy for at least five years, you become eligible to apply for a permanent residence permit. Connect with Ronan on Instagram |
